Business
All BRTA fee payments now hassle-free through Nagad
All fees for the services provided by Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) can now be paid in the comfort of people’s homes through Nagad, a leading mobile financial service in Bangladesh.
A recent agreement in this connection signed between Nagad and Computer Network Systems Limited, a digital payment service provider of BRTA, has paved the way for customers to easily pay all types of fees against services, such as motor vehicle registration, issuance and renewal driving license, transfer of ownership, digital registration certificate, issuance and renewal of motor vehicles fitness, tax token and route permit, says a press release on Saturday.
They no longer have to physically visit banks or BRTA-designated locations for the service fee payments.
Read: Dhaka’s Mahbub Haider wins Nagad’s BMW car
Customers will get an E-receipt in Nagad payment system as soon as they pay fees of BRTA services through Nagad payment gateway. Showing it, they can collect the original receipts from banks or BRTA-designated locations at their convenient time without facing any hassle of standing in long queues.
To pay BRTA services fees using Nagad, a customer needs to log in to the BRTA service portal and select respective services from the menu bar on the left. Then, he or she will put in their NID number and date of birth. After that, they will choose their desired service name and go to the payment confirmation window that will give a view of all the information inserted for checking. Then, they need to select the Nagad payment gateway and enter a Nagad account number in the gateway. The payment will be completed with one-time password (OTP) and Nagad PIN.
Read: Nagad now has 8 crore customers
A customer has to pay a 1.5 percent convenience charge for paying BRTA fees through Nagad, which must be paid at the time of processing the payment. Any problems with respect to availing BRTA services through Nagad will be resolved within seven working days. Besides, customers can dial BRTA hotline number 16107 or 09610 990 998 from Sunday to Thursday: 9am to 4pm.
Md Shihab Uddin Chowdhury, chief commercial officer of Nagad Ltd., said, “Our customers no longer have to wait for hours in long queues for paying fees for BRTA services. Now, such payments using Nagad will save working hours, eventually helping our country take another step towards a cashless society.”
Read: Nagad dangles ‘Ek Takar’ offer on GP mobile recharge
Currently, customers can easily pay electricity, gas, water and other utility bills through Nagad. Besides, salaries of various educational institutions, insurance premiums, loan instalments, credit card bills, etc. can be paid by the MFS carrier.
US-Bangla to add 9th ATR 72–600 aircraft to its fleet
US-Bangla Airlines, one of the largest private airlines in Bangladesh, is going to add its ninth ATR 72-600 aircraft to its fleet.
The aircraft is scheduled to land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Sunday (23 July) at 4pm, said a press release on Saturday.
Read: US-Bangla Airlines celebrates its 9th founding anniversary
With the addition of the new ATR 72-600, the US-Bangla fleet will increase to a total of 20 aircraft, reads the release.
The new aircraft has 72 seats and it will be used to operate flights on various domestic routes and Kolkata.
Read: US-Bangla to start Dhaka-Delhi direct flights from July end
It is scheduled to be officially received by senior officials of US-Bangla Airlines at the airport.
US-Bangla Airlines currently operates regular flights on all domestic routes as well as international routes to Kolkata, Chennai, Male, Muscat, Doha, Dubai, Sharjah, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and Guangzhou.
Read: US-Bangla secures 5th position in ‘Skytrax World Airline Awards 2023’
Besides, there are plans to add six wide-body aircraft to the US-Bangla fleet this year.
Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft and other tech firms agree to AI safeguards set by the White House
President Joe Biden said Friday that new commitments by Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft and other companies that are leading the development of artificial intelligence technology to meet a set of AI safeguards brokered by his White House are an important step toward managing the "enormous" promise and risks posed by the technology.
Biden announced that his administration has secured voluntary commitments from seven U.S. companies meant to ensure their AI products are safe before they release them. Some of the commitments call for third-party oversight of the workings of commercial AI systems, though they don't detail who will audit the technology or hold the companies accountable.
"We must be clear eyed and vigilant about the threats emerging technologies can pose," Biden said, adding that the companies have a "fundamental obligation" to ensure their products are safe."Social media has shown us the harm that powerful technology can do without the right safeguards in place," Biden added. "These commitments are a promising step, but we have a lot more work to do together."
A surge of commercial investment in generative AI tools that can write convincingly human-like text and churn out new images and other media has brought public fascination as well as concern about their ability to trick people and spread disinformation, among other dangers.
The four tech giants, along with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and startups Anthropic and Inflection, have committed to security testing "carried out in part by independent experts" to guard against major risks, such as to biosecurity and cybersecurity, the White House said in a statement.
That testing will also examine the potential for societal harms, such as bias and discrimination, and more theoretical dangers about advanced AI systems that could gain control of physical systems or "self-replicate" by making copies of themselves.
The companies have also committed to methods for reporting vulnerabilities to their systems and to using digital watermarking to help distinguish between real and AI-generated images known as deepfakes.
They will also publicly report flaws and risks in their technology, including effects on fairness and bias, the White House said.
The voluntary commitments are meant to be an immediate way of addressing risks ahead of a longer-term push to get Congress to pass laws regulating the technology. Company executives plan to gather with Biden at the White House on Friday as they pledge to follow the standards.Some advocates for AI regulations said Biden's move is a start but more needs to be done to hold the companies and their products accountable.
"A closed-door deliberation with corporate actors resulting in voluntary safeguards isn't enough," said Amba Kak, executive director of the AI Now Institute. "We need a much more wide-ranging public deliberation, and that's going to bring up issues that companies almost certainly won't voluntarily commit to because it would lead to substantively different results, ones that may more directly impact their business models."
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has said he will introduce legislation to regulate AI. He said in a statement that he will work closely with the Biden administration "and our bipartisan colleagues" to build upon the pledges made Friday.
A number of technology executives have called for regulation, and several went to the White House in May to speak with Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and other officials.
Microsoft President Brad Smith said in a blog post Friday that his company is making some commitments that go beyond the White House pledge, including support for regulation that would create a "licensing regime for highly capable models."
But some experts and upstart competitors worry that the type of regulation being floated could be a boon for deep-pocketed first-movers led by OpenAI, Google and Microsoft as smaller players are elbowed out by the high cost of making their AI systems known as large language models adhere to regulatory strictures.
The White House pledge notes that it mostly only applies to models that "are overall more powerful than the current industry frontier," set by currently available models such as OpenAI's GPT-4 and image generator DALL-E 2 and similar releases from Anthropic, Google and Amazon.
A number of countries have been looking at ways to regulate AI, including European Union lawmakers who have been negotiating sweeping AI rules for the 27-nation bloc that could restrict applications deemed to have the highest risks.
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres recently said the United Nations is "the ideal place" to adopt global standards and appointed a board that will report back on options for global AI governance by the end of the year.
Guterres also said he welcomed calls from some countries for the creation of a new U.N. body to support global efforts to govern AI, inspired by such models as the International Atomic Energy Agency or the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The White House said Friday that it has already consulted on the voluntary commitments with a number of countries.
The pledge is heavily focused on safety risks but doesn't address other worries about the latest AI technology, including the effect on jobs and market competition, the environmental resources required to build the models, and copyright concerns about the writings, art and other human handiwork being used to teach AI systems how to produce human-like content.
Last week, OpenAI and The Associated Press announced a deal for the AI company to license AP's archive of news stories. The amount it will pay for that content was not disclosed.
Huawei celebrates its 25 years’ journey in Bangladesh
Huawei, a Chinese multinational technology corporation, celebrated its 25 years of journey in Bangladesh.
Planning Minister MA Mannan, Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar, Chinese ambassador to Bangladesh Yao Wen and President of Huawei South Asia Region Pan Junfeng attended the grand celebration.
Read: Teletalk signs deal with Huawei to strengthen nationwide network
Ambassador Yao said over the past 25 years, Huawei has witnessed and participated in the leapfrog development of the information and communications sector in Bangladesh.
Read: Huawei introduces innovative solutions of IntelligentCore at MWC Shanghai 2023
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative.
"With the joint efforts of both sides, China and Bangladesh have achieved positive results in the field of information and communications. China is a true friend of Bangladesh and the ultimate realization of "Smart Bangladesh", as part of Vision 2041, couldn't be achieved without China. China is very willing to participate in it," the ambassador added.
Read more: Huawei organizes workshop for local PV solution installers
Bajus fixes gold price to over Tk 1 lakh per bhori
The Gold Jewellers became costlier and marked its price at Tk1,00,777 per bhori for the first time in the country.
Bangladesh Jewellers Samity (Bajus) on Thursday announced the price hike, said a press release.
The price of good quality 22 carat gold has been increased by Tk2, 333 per bhori.
This price is the highest ever in the country.
The press release was signed by MA Hannan Azad, Chairman of Bajus Price Determination and Price Monitoring Standing Committee on Thursday.
According to the notification, the price of acidic gold has increased in the local market. Considering the overall situation, Bajus has fixed the new price of gold. It will be implemented from Friday (July 21).
The price of 21 carat solid gold is Tk96228, 18 carat is Tk82464 and the traditional gold price is Tk68701. The price of gold has been increased but the price of silver has been kept unchanged.
Earlier on June 7, Bajus fixed the price of gold which was effective from June 8.
According to that price till Thursday top quality or 22 carat gold was being sold at Tk98, 444 per bhori. The price of 21 carat solid gold was Tk93, 954 and 18 carat was Tk80, 540 and the traditional gold price was Tk67, 126.
Companies that have not paid dividends yet will be penalised: BSEC Chairman
Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) Chairman Professor Shibli Rubayat-ul-Islam said the listed companies that have not deposited the portion of the undistributed dividend to the Capital Market Stabilisation Fund (CMSF), will be penalised soon after the audit report.
He said the regulator will not allow investors' assets to remain in others' possession.
He said this while speaking as the chief guest at a seminar titled 'Risk Management Framework of CMSF' organised by the Capital Market Stabilisation Fund (CMSF) authority in the capital on Thursday.
Read: Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption is on the rise in developing countries: IFAD
CMSF Chairman and former Chief Secretary to Prime Minister Najibur Rahman presided over the event.
Professor Shibli said that Tk225 crore has already been invested in the stock market from the CMSF.
In the first year, the profit from this fund was Tk11 crore and expect more to come this year, he said.
Those who come here to invest will pay Tk2 crore, we will also give Tk2 crore, the BSEC Chairman said.
Read: AIBL organizes business performance meeting
Professor Shibli said, “We are trying to create a stable market from all sides.”
He expressed hope that when the trading of government bonds starts in the capital market, the transaction will increase from Tk1000 crore to much more.
He said, “There is a confidence crisis in the market. From there, we are working to get back the confidence of the investors. Hopefully, we will get success in our efforts soon. Because in our work, I will take advice from you, that is, the people related to the market, which work to do first.”
The former governor of Bangladesh Bank Mohammad Farasuddin said the capital market needs to be strengthened by releasing banks from long-term liabilities.
President of FBCCI Jasim Uddin said that the capital market is progressing and could have done better.
“Our investors invest without understanding; many consider it as a fixed deposit. It is never expected. It will be difficult to get funds from this market if it goes to big business,” he said.
RFL launches motorcycle helmets for the first time in the country
RFL has launched motorcycle helmet in the market with the aim of delivering high-quality helmets within the purchasing power of people.
RN Paul, managing director of RFL Group, unveiled the cover of "Safemate" branded helmet manufactured for the first time in the country at a hotel in the capital on Thursday, according to a press release.
Also read: RFL showcases products 6400 products at DITF 2023
The "Safemate" helmets are being manufactured at Durable Plastic Limited factory, a sister concern of RFL Group, located in Palash, Narsingdi. The factory has an annual production capacity of over 120,000 pieces. Initially, around Tk 20 crore has been invested in this factory, it said.
The annual helmet market in the country is over Tk 500 crore at the moment. Almost all helmets used in Bangladesh are imported. About 60 percent of imported helmets come from India and the remaining 40 percent come from China, the release also said.
Also read: PRAN-RFL bags 5 nat’l export trophies
“Helmet is an important accessories for bikers. Apart from ensuring safety, it is mandatory for bikers and pillion riders to wear helmet as per the existing laws of the country. The number of motorcycle users in Bangladesh is increasing day by day due for various reasons including socio-economic conditions, lifestyle changes. For the same reason, the demand for helmets is also rising,” said the RFL MD.
“The helmets available in Bangladesh are almost imported and most of the imported helmets are not of standard quality. The Safemate helmet is BSTI certified, which is the only one in Bangladesh. The main purpose of entering into this business is to deliver high-quality helmets within the purchasing power of people,” he said.
Toukirul Islam, executive director of Durable Plastic Limited, said the main feature of Safemate helmet is that it is made of advanced ABS shell and PC material. It has high quality belt and locking system. Moreover, there is an advanced ventilation system to ensure the comfort of the user.
Also read: RFL holds dealers' conference in UAE
Initially two types of helmets will be available in the market. The half face helmet will have a maximum retail price of Tk 1,400 and the full face helmet will have a maximum retail price of Tk 2,250. "Safemate" helmets are available at superstores apart from shops that sell bike accessories and helmets, the release also said.
Durable Plastic Limited’s Head of Marketing Esfaquel Hoque, Assistant General Manager (Operation) Nahid Kabir, PRAN-RFL Group’s Assistant General Manager (Public Relations) Touhiduzzaman and high officials of Durable Plastics Limited were present on the occasion.
Read more: Motorcycle Helmet Buyer's Guide with Price Ranges in Bangladesh
Speakers for skilled manpower for economic growth of Bangladesh
Speakers applauded Bangladesh's impressive progress in socio-economic sectors and parallelly expressed their concern over the lack of skilled manpower and lower tax-GDP.
They said despite having an abundant low-cost labour force, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and many local investors are hiring a large number of skilled manpower from abroad due to lack of it in the country.
They made the remarks while speaking at the conference of the International Growth Centre (IGC) on 'Resilient and Resurgent Bangladesh, held in the hotel intercontinental, in Dhaka on Wednesday.
At the conference, Bangladesh's sustainable economic growth in a changing climate was highlighted. Two keynote papers were presented at the event in two segments.
In the maiden season, a keynote paper on 'The future of works in Bangladesh' was presented by Dr Masrur Reaz, chairman of policy exchange and policy adviser to IGC.
Mohsina Yasmin, executive member of Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) and Dr Muhammad Yunus, senior research fellow of BIDS, spoke as expert panelists in the first session.
Jonathan Leape, executive director of the IGC, moderated the first session.
The keynote on strengthening domestic resource mobilisation and cost recovery strategies for self-reliant Bangladesh was presented by Dr MA Razzaque, chairman of RAPID, a research think tank, at the second session.
Dr Atiur Rahman, former governor of Bangladesh Bank (BB), moderated it.
Dr M Abu Eusuf, a Dhaka University professor of Development Studies department, Oliver Harman, cities economist of the IGC, Md Iqbal Hossain, NBR member, Dr Mustafizur Rahman, distinguished fellow of CPD and Dr Nasir Uddin Ahmed, former chairman of NBR, put forwarded their views from the expert panellists at the event.
Both the presentations and the expert panellists underscored the need for the good governance, digitalization of NBR and enhancement of allocation in the education sector to generate a skilled manpower.
Praising the economic growth of Bangladesh, the speakers said the net of the country’s GDP was only $44 billion post the liberation but it now stood at $465 billion now.
The exports of goods, services and earning remittance are increasing gradually, but creation of employment opportunities are not expanding as required, the speakers observed.
They pointed out that 1.93 million youths emerge in the job market every year in Bangladesh amid the limited job sectors.
They also emphasized the need for diversification of product s as currently 94 percent earning from the export in Bangladesh come from 5 particular products.
Regarding the lower tax GDP, the speakers said 20 million people are paying holding tax while 2.2 million people are submitting their tax returns.
The government had plans to increase tax GDP to 14 percent by 2022, rather it decreased by 2 percent to 7 percent from previous 9 percent. This is the scenario of government resources mobilization, they said.
There are a lot of opportunities to grow revenue, but it is not happening due to lack of time befitting policy and political commitment, they said.
Prominent economists, government officials, researchers, and representatives of international development partners, were present at the conference.
The programme is funded by UK Aid and directed by London School of Economics (LSE) and the University of Oxford.
Bangladesh Apparel Summit held in Australia
The Bangladesh Apparel Summit was held in Melbourne, Australia on Tuesday. The Summit was organized by the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers & Exporters Association (BGMEA) in collaboration with the HSBC Bank, supported by the High Commission of Bangladesh to Australia.
This summit brought together a number of 130 participants from diverse range of stakeholders, including buyers, retailers, suppliers, consumers, development partners, and supportive Australian government policymakers, creating an opportunity for fruitful discussions, meaningful interactions, and the exchange of ideas and information, according to a press release.
Throughout the day, speakers at the event shared their insights through opening plenary and two panel discussions titled “Trade between Australia and Bangladesh – Charting the path for next decade and “Sustainability matters – ESG collaborations to shape the future of fashion”.
BGMEA President Faruque Hassan delivered a keynote presentation highlighting the immense potential of Bangladesh and critical issues such as supply chain transparency, responsible sourcing, and ethical manufacturing practices. He solicited collaboration for a future where the fashion industry flourishes prioritizing social, environmental, and responsible business norms and values.
High Commissioner of Bangladesh to Australia M Allama Siddiki brought in the perspective of historic and cultural connections between the two nations and urged to exploit it for strengthening bilateral trade and investments on mutual interests, said the release.
The event signified a milestone in fostering collaboration and strengthening the bonds between the apparel manufacturing industries of Bangladesh and Australian retailers.
Among the speakers, the Managing Director of Kmart Group Ian Bailey praised Bangladesh’s transformation on social and environmental sides, while stressed on the importance of leveraging industry level data and information sharing to steer supply chain efficiency and productivity. He opined to upgrade the tier 2 and tier 3 factories in Bangladesh while continuing the ESG standards in tier 1 factories.
Matt Fregon, MP, Deputy Speaker of Victoria legislative and Shadow Minister for Trade and Investment David Southwick MP of Victoria also attended the sessions in the Summit. The event included an exclusive photo exhibition of Bangladesh and its rich heritage and nature. A product showcasing was organised featuring the latest collections and diverse portfolio, which gave a clear impression of Bangladesh’s capability.
BB issued cyber attack warning for banks, financial institutions
Bangladesh Bank (BB) issued a cyber attack warning in banks and other financial institutions after leakage of a large number of private information of citizens.
The central bank recently issued the warning asking them to enhance malware surveillance and apply different security tools to secure financial information of banks.
Also read: Bangladesh Bank introduces 'market-based' dollar exchange rate with rate cap
Though the BB has not mentioned any specific area, the malware like the banking Trojan TrickBot, which can steal financial details, account credentials and personally identifiable information should be under check.
The BB asked banks to notify it of any recent incidents of malware attacks and the actions taken by July 13. It also sought a detailed account of the preventive and reactive measures from cyberattacks by July 20.
BB Spokesman Md Mezbaul Haque acknowledged sending the letters, which was part of the central bank's general housekeeping. "Banks are taking proactive measures," he added.
Also read: Bangladesh Bank working to normalise inflation and dollar crisis despite geopolitical challenges
After Bangladesh Krishi Bank's server came under a malware attack last month, the central bank gave warning letters to the banks.
Notorious ransomware group ALPHV, also known as BlackCat, broke into the state bank's servers and made way with more than 170 GB of crucial information.
The break-in went undetected for 12 days, giving the hackers ample time to study internal documentation and steal valuable data with impunity.
Also read: Bangladesh Bank set to approve digital bank policy on June 14